Lewis Hamilton In "Perfect Spot" As He Returns To Top 3 In Mexico GP Qualifying

The Tifosi and Hamilton fans have been waiting all season for a breakthrough performance from the World Champion since his shock move to Ferrari for the 2025 season. However, with a season fraught with disappointing performances, it looked like that time may never come.
In a shocking return to form, or as the commentators said, "what Hamilton signed up for," the Ferrari pair were absolutely rapid around Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez, qualifying in P2 (Charles Leclerc) and P3 (Lewis Hamilton).
Hamilton, of course, was thrilled to be back on the platform chatting with Hinchcliffe as a member of the top three, but that interview could barely be heard over the thousands of fans celebrating his strong qualifying position.

Ferrari's Improvement is Not Due to Development, but Race Weekend 'Process'
Hamilton was visibly thrilled to be standing on the platform after qualifying in the top 3 with Leclerc and Norris in Mexico, but he dedicated this performance leap directly to the Ferrari team.
"The team truly deserves it. We're just working as hard as we can - super grateful to everyone in the team for continuing to push and not give up. We've not really moved the car forward, necessarily, in development but we've extracted more from it. Our process is better this weekend and that's what you're seeing. Gratzie Tutti"Lewis Hamilton, Ferrari, P3
It's rare to see a driver so happy to be starting in P3, but with a lack of development and developments throughout the season that simply didn't stack up to McLaren, Red Bull, or even Mercedes, Hamilton's joy is understandable.
Both Hamilton and Leclerc were notably strong throughout the entire weekend through all of the practice sessions that they drove. Hamilton never dropped out of the top 10 and even topped the session in Free Practice 1. All in all, the team's form has been strong over the past two weekends.
Hamilton in the "Perfect Spot" For the Race Tomorrow

In his post-qualifying interview, Hamilton pointed out that the Mexico City track is unique in that starting P3 is to his advantage. From a man who has won this race twice (2016 and 2019), we believe him.
"It's hard to beat these two guys today, but P3 is kind of the perfect spot actually at this track. So I'm hoping I can make the most of that at the start. I think our race pace is not too bad. I think it's difficult to know, really."Lewis Hamilton, Ferrari, P3
Although Lewis is conservatively excited for the race start tomorrow, starting behind Lando Norris and teammate Charles Leclerc, it really could be an advantage in the long run.
Lando Norris has traditionally not had strong starts, especially last week in Austin during the Sprint and U.S. Grand Prix, where he crashed and lost position to Leclerc at the start.
Regardless of strategy, Hamilton left the interview with a note to the excited Mexico GP fans.
"I'm hoping with this crowd.. I know there's going to be an amazing crowd there tomorrow so we'll try to give them a good race."Lewis Hamilton, P3, Ferrari
Hamilton's best finish all year has been P4, most recently at the U.S. Grand Prix last week. Will we finally see the 7-time World Champion on the podium in Mexico?
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Kaitlin Tucci has been a fan of motorsport for close to a decade. Before joining On SI in 2025, she contributed heavily to the marketing and media efforts at FanAmp, a motorsports startup for which she was the Head of Marketing. She has contributed to a number of publications covering series such as Formula 1, IndyCar, IMSA, and more... Kaitlin graduated from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology with both a degree in Business/Marketing and Political Science. She works full time as a marketer at high-growth tech startups while spending her weekends immersed in the world of racing. Kaitlin was raised in Las Vegas, Nevada, but has lived in New York City for the past 5 years with her 'giant chihuahua' Willow. You'll often catch Willow watching races alongside Kaitlin, but unfortunately she doesn't have enough airline miles to join her at the track just yet.